Registering Industrial Design in Timor-Leste

Timor-Leste is in a stage of development, with a lot of potential for the development of various types of industrial designs in many fields. For example, in the field of handicrafts and traditional products, Timor-Leste owns a variety of unique handicraft products such as textiles, wood carving, pottery and jewelry. The development of industrial designs for these products and items can help improve value and competitiveness in the international market. Timor-Leste is also a well-known country in the field of agricultural products and processed foods, Timor-Leste has the potential to produce coffee, cocoa, honey and tropical fruits. Designing attractive and unique product packaging and labels can help attract consumers and promote the image of Timor-Leste products. The tourism industry is growing in Timor-Leste, creating opportunities for the design of souvenir products imbued with local cultural identity. Unique and innovative industrial designs will help attract tourists and make a good impression of the country. Therefore, more and more organizations and individuals want to register industrial designs in Timor-Leste, Viet An Law would like to guide customers through the preliminary procedures for registering industrial designs in Timor-Leste through the article below.

Intellectual Property Registration System in Timor-Leste

Intellectual property registration in Timor-Leste is currently quite limited because the country is still in the process of developing and perfecting the relevant legal system. The situation in Timor-Leste can be roughly summarized as follows: Timor-Leste does not have its own laws on intellectual property, including industrial designs, patents, trademarks and copyrights. This means that there is no official registration agency or procedure for these intellectual property objects. The Timor-Lesteese government is working to develop and improve its intellectual property legal system, but this will take a long time.

Some methods of protection of industrial designs in Timor-Leste

Posting a Cautionary Notice

“Cautionary Notice” is the most common method of protecting intellectual property rights in Timor-Leste, especially for industrial designs. Warning messages typically include:

• Detailed description of the industrial design: Includes the features, shapes, structures, materials, and other elements that make the design unique.
• Clear images or drawings of the design: Make it easy for readers to identify and distinguish protected industrial designs.
• Style owner information: The owner’s name, address, and other contact information.
• Claim of Ownership: Assert the owner’s ownership of the industrial design.
• Infringement warning: Warning other parties not to copy, use, or exploit an industrial design without the owner’s permission.

Use of Non-Disclosure Agreement (NDA)

Non-Disclosure Agreements (NDAs) are an important legal tool for the protection of industrial designs in Timor-Leste, especially when owners need to share design information with third parties such as partners, manufacturers, investors, etc.

Purpose of NDA:

• Protection of Confidential Information: NDAs ensure that parties receiving information about the owner’s industrial design will not disclose or use it for personal or commercial purposes without the owner’s consent.
• Infringement Prevention: An NDA helps prevent the copying, unauthorized use, or exploitation of the owner’s industrial design by the contracting parties.
• Create trust: NDAs create a clear and transparent legal framework, helping to build trust between stakeholders.

The main content of the NDA:

• Definition of confidential information: Clearly define what information is considered confidential, including drawings, models, technical documents, specifications, etc.
• Purpose of use of the information: Specify the purposes for which the parties are permitted to use the confidential information, e.g., evaluation, production, marketing, etc.
• Confidentiality period: Stipulates the amount of time that the parties must keep the information confidential, usually a certain period of time after the contract ends.
• Indemnification: Determines liability for damages if a party violates confidentiality terms.
• Dispute resolution: Stipulating how to resolve disputes if disputes arise related to information security.

Although not as strong a legal force as an official intellectual property registration, a warning notice still has a warning value and can be used as evidence in the event of a dispute.

Copyright Acknowledgment

Copyright recognition is a method of protection that can be applied to industrial designs in Timor-Leste, but the following points should be noted:

Advantage:

• Protection of specific expression: Copyright protects the specific expression of an industrial design in the form of technical drawings, 3D models, or other forms of expression. This means that copyright will prevent others from accurately copying that expression.
• No registration required: Unlike industrial design registration, copyright automatically arises when the work is created and fixed on a physical medium.
• Long term of protection: The term of copyright protection usually lasts for the life of the author and for a certain period of time after the death of the author (usually 50 years).

Restrict:

• No Idea Protection: Copyright only protects the specific expression of an industrial design, not the idea, concept, or working principle of the design. This means that others can still create similar designs as long as they don’t exactly copy the owner’s expression.
• Not optimal protection: Copyright is not the optimal protection for industrial designs. If the owner wants to fully protect his or her ideas and designs, the owner should seek to register an industrial design when the legal system of Timor-Leste allows it.

How to recognize copyright in Timor-Leste

Currently, Timor-Leste does not have its own copyright law. However, the owner can apply the following measures to recognize the copyright of his industrial design:

• Specify copyright information: Mark on documents related to industrial designs (drawings, models, etc.) with symbols ©, year of creation, and author’s name.
• Evidence Storage: Securely store drawings, models, and related documents as proof of the owner’s copyright.
• Publication of the work: Publication of the owner’s industrial design in the media or at events to prove the owner’s copyright.

Market Monitoring and Monitoring

Market monitoring and monitoring is an important measure to protect the industrial design of owners in Timor-Leste, especially in the context of the lack of adequate intellectual property laws. This helps owners:

• Violation detection: Proactively monitoring the market helps owners quickly detect cases of copying, counterfeiting, or unauthorized use of their industrial designs.
• Gathering evidence: When detecting a violation, it is important to collect evidence to serve as a basis for later legal actions.
• Risk Prevention: Market monitoring helps owners assess the popularity of their industrial designs, thereby predicting and preventing potential risks.
• Brand protection: Protecting an industrial design also means protecting the brand and reputation of the owner business.

Reasons why Timor-Leste does not have an industrial design registration system

The legal system is not complete

Timor-Leste is a fledgling country, having gained independence in 2002. The country’s legal system is still in the process of being developed and perfected, including intellectual property law. Building an industrial design registration system requires a solid legal framework, including regulations on industrial design standards, registration procedures, rights protection, dispute resolution, and more.

Resource limitations

Timor-Leste is a country with limited resources, both financially and humanly. The establishment and operation of an industrial design registration system requires significant investment in infrastructure, staff training, and public awareness of intellectual property.

Prioritize economic development

The Timor-Lesteese government prioritizes focusing on more pressing issues such as poverty alleviation, economic development, and infrastructure construction. The development of an industrial design registration system may not be considered a top priority in the current period.

Lack of awareness of intellectual property

Awareness of intellectual property among the business community and people of Timor-Leste is still limited. This can reduce the need for industrial design registration and make it difficult to enforce intellectual property rights.

However, Timor-Leste has been working to improve its legal system and protect intellectual property. The country has joined a number of international agreements on intellectual property and is developing related policies and regulations. It is hoped that in the near future, Timor-Leste will have a formal industrial design registration system to encourage creativity and technological innovation.